Brendan Murphy (born 1955) is an Australian public servant, health executive and

nephrologist Nephrology (from Greek'' nephros'' "kidney", combined with the suffix ''-logy'', "the study of") is a specialty of adult internal medicine and pediatric medicine that concerns the study of the kidneys, specifically normal kidney function ( ...

who served as the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Australia from 4 October 2016 before beginning as the

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

of the

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...

on 13 July 2020.

Biography

Murphy was born in 1955 and educated at

Preshil Preshil School, also known as The Margaret Lyttle Memorial School, is an independent progressive co-educational, day school located in Kew, an eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The original Arlington campus houses the Kindergar ...

Melbourne Grammar School (Pray and Work) , established = 1849 (on present site since 1858 - the celebrated date of foundation) , type = Independent, co-educational primary, single-sex boys secondary, day and boarding , denominatio ...

and

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

within the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

. He married lawyer and university administrator Sally Walker in 1979 and has two sons. Murphy was a

by profession and was formerly president of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology; CMO and director of nephrology at St Vincent's Health; CEO of Austin Health; and a board member of Health Workforce Australia, the

Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, more commonly known as the Florey Institute, is an Australian medical research institute that undertakes clinical and applied research into treatments for brain and mind disorders and th ...

, the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute, and the

Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre The Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre (VCCC) is a multi-site, multi-disciplinary specialist cancer hospital and research centre located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The VCCC comprises an alliance between The University of Melbourne, th ...

. Murphy is the first

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

to be appointed the public servant position of Secretary of the Department of Health in its current incarnation, and since Dr Gwynne Howells, who was Secretary to the former Department of Health until 1982.

Chief Medical Officer

Murphy was appointed CMO of Australia on 4 October 2016, when he replaced Chris Baggoley. He became "the public face of Australia's fight against

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

" during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Australia The COVID-19 pandemic in Australia is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The first confirmed case in Australia was identified on 25 Januar ...

, giving regular

press conference A press conference or news conference is a media event in which notable individuals or organizations invite journalists to hear them speak and ask questions. Press conferences are often held by politicians, corporations, non-governmental organ ...

s with the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Scott Morrison Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for t ...

, and Health Minister

Greg Hunt Gregory Andrew Hunt (born 18 November 1965) is a former Australian politician who was the Minister for Health between January 2017 and May 2022. He was a Liberal Party member of the House of Representatives between November 2001 and 2022, repre ...

. Murphy was also head of the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee and in that role an adviser to the

National Cabinet of Australia National Cabinet is the Australian intergovernmental decision-making forum composed of the prime minister and state and territory premiers and chief ministers. Originally established on 13 March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Na ...

created to respond to the pandemic. He vacated the role of CMO on 29 June 2020, and became the Secretary of the

on 13 July 2020, an appointment initially announced in January 2020, but delayed due to his central role in the response to the Coronavirus pandemic. His deputy, Paul Kelly, is acting the role of CMO until a new appointment is made.

Recognition

On 2 November 2020 Murphy was named

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Governmentowned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the State and Territo ...

. In June 2022, Murphy was appointed

Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours for "eminent service to medical administration and community health, particularly as Chief Medical Officer, and to nephrology, to research and innovation, and to professional organisations".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Brendan 1955 births Australian health officials Australian nephrologists Companions of the Order of Australia 21st-century Australian medical doctors 21st-century Australian public servants Living people Secretaries of Australian Government departments People educated at Trinity College (University of Melbourne) University of Melbourne alumni Public servants from Melbourne Medical doctors from Melbourne